The last few days of summer has a way of playing tricks on your eyes. It you were walking around the streets of Baltimore and thought that they was doing just that when you saw Superman, Batman, and a zombie, well rest assured you do not need professional help.Your eyes did not deceive you, it was simply time for the annual Baltimore Comic Convention.

Returning with an expanded artist alley, the Baltimore Comic Con featured legendary creator Stan Lee as its special guest. However Stan was not alone as he was joined by legendary Spider Man artist John Romita, Sr. Stan and John were not the only high-profile creators that attended the con. Industry titans like Erik Larson, John Romita, Jr., Garth Ennis, and Mark Waid were also in attendance. Speaking of Mark Waid, his panel on Thrillbent’s future and digital comics was one of our favorite moments of the convention. Mr. Waid’s passion for not only his own company, but for the comics medium in general was refreshing and engaging, and can’t help but make you root for Thrillbent’s continued success.

Another panel that really caught us was the one that featured Valiant comics. Valiant initially made a splash in the comics world in the early 90s during a time when it and other companies like Image began pushing the boundaries of what comics could be. Unlike Image, Valiant didn’t survive into the next millennium. Recently the company arisen from the ashes like a phoenix and the panel at Baltimore Comic Con featured creative members from all of its current and pending titles including our favorite Archer & Armstrong.

The panels at this year’s convention were very effectively designed in their focus to attract everyone from the passing fan to the burgeoning creator. Panels featured included ones from companies like Marvel, DC, Valiant, and IDW, to those that focused on using Kickstarted to fund projects with the guys from Paper Labs Studios, creating your own titles from concept to publication with Comfort and Adam, and digital comics with Comixology. Of course, the most talked about and attended panel of the convention was the one featuring Stan”The Man” Lee and John Romita, Jr.

No comic convention is complete with out the fans that are really the heart and soul of any convention, the cosplayers. Costumes ran a wide spectrum from popular science fiction characters like Dr. Who, to video game characters like M. Bison, to comic characters that we all know and love like Batman and Superman. At the Baltimore Comic Con cosplay is alive and well.

With its expanded artist alley, top-notch guest and panels, multitude of quality merchants, and of course the throngs of adoring fans of the medium, the 2012 Baltimore Comic Con has set a high bar for 2013. And we can’t wait to see it they are we to set the bar even higher.

Published by websterstyle

Elden is the founder of WebsterStyleMagazine.com, a digital magazine that caters to the new urban male by spotlighting the best attributes of the new urban male's interests and passions.
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